Remix 3-6

The ShinsOh, Inverted WorldSub PopThe members of The Shins are gonna make you love ’em with every single note they play. Their brand of indie pop rock and spaghetti Western twang will invade your stereo, hold it hostage, and never let you change the disc. When I first heard The Shins I thought the group was from England, but it’s really from Albuquerque, New Mexico.The quartet’s staffed with members of a former band called Flake. The music on this disc is filled with reverberating guitars, cloudy keyboards, gently rolling bass lines, and precise drumming. They’ve toured with Modest Mouse, and the crowds were really feeling them. The Shins sounds like a mix between Modest Mouse and Belle and Sebastian, with some Beatles thrown in for good measure. Go get this disc-it’s not an option, it’s a direct order from your heart telling you to fall in love with this CD.-C.C.

The BeatnutsTake It Or Squeeze ItLoud RecordsThe Beatnuts are crazy-ass hip-hoppers who should be diagnosed with some kind of attention deficit disorder, because JuJu and Psycho Les are really hyper and are all over the place on Take It Or Squeeze It. Heavy hitters on this album include Greg Nice, Al Tariq, Method Man, Tony Touch, Willie Stubz, and Fatman Scoop. If you’re a fan of the ‘Nuts, take it or squeeze it.-A.S.

Pleasure ForeverPleasure ForeverSub Pop RecordsThis is piano rock that’s sure to get you off your fat ass and throw you out onto the dance floor to shimmy and shake like you want to. The new album by Pleasure Forever is some original ass-kicking rock and roll with deep emotion and constant entertainment. The band’s new CD listens like a great movie unfolding in front of your eyes. Pleasure Forever was formerly a band called Slaves, but it was reborn and came out of the womb better than ever. If you go buy a CD today, get this one. Enjoy this music you’ve never heard. Just think Billy Joel as a smooth, dark, indie rocker.-C.C.

The Misfits The Collection IICaroline RecordsThis is the second compilation of all the greatest Misfits (the original Misfits with Glenn Danzig, not the new Misfits with Jerry Only and his corny bullshit) songs, and it’s f-king amazing. The Collection II came out a few years ago, but who cares? It’s got the classics like “Halloween,” “Nike-A-Go-Go,” “Horror Hotel,” “Hate Breeders,” “Braineaters,” and “Children In Heat.” Remember this: The original Misfits will always rule the morbidly doomed world of horror-core. Just listen to the abnormal mastery these guys were dishing out while all you assholes out there were still shitting green. Pure demonomania!-A.S.

The Mother HipsGreen Hills Of EarthFuture FarmerThe Mother Hips is a happy band that plays the kind of music that could quite possibly make you very happy. The group has a multiple-singer sound that’s really pleasing to the ears, and I’d say it sounds like a mix of the Beach Boys and The Eels. That might be completely off track, but you should just go buy this CD and decide for yourself-it’s good ol’ fun-soundin’ indie rock. The Mother Hips is new flashback rock-clean, classic-rock indie twang for the music lover in all of us.-C.C.

Def Jux Presents …Def Jux RecordingsThis is the ill shit, kid. Def Jux is a record company owned and operated by none other than El-P from the super-group Company Flow, and this piece is jumpin’. Besides Company Flow, expect to hear some dope underground hip-hop like Aesop Rock, Cannibal Ox, RJD2, and Ill Bill. It’s real hip-hop like you’ve never heard. Believe me, you haven’t heard this before-that’s why I’m cluein’ you in right now, fool. Be a man-get this and bang it loud.-A.S.

The Album LeafOne Day I’ll Be On TimeTiger Style RecordsJimmy Levalle has a band called Tristeza. He also has a band called The Album Leaf. The Album Leaf has a new release called One Day I’ll Be On Time. This is an album you should add to your coollection-it’ll put you in a trance and make your brain feel like it’s getting a massage. If you put this on while you’re in the bathtub, it’ll feel like you’re in your mother’s womb. Some may call it minimalist post-rock electronica, but I think it’s just brain-therapy music. If you like Tortoise or Tristeza, you’ll like The Album Leaf. Go get it today at your local indie music store.-C.C.

Red House PaintersOld RamonSub PopThe term “easy listening” has been ruined. Most people associate it with elevator music or some Yanni crap. Real easy- listening, however, is simply music that’s easy to listen to. Take, for example, this new Red House Painters album. It’s easy to listen to because it’s calming, it’s very pretty, and it makes you happy. When was the last time a CD just straight-up made you happy? Do yourself and your brain a favor-go buy this new Red House Painters disc. Take it home and just relax-you’ll thank yourself. If you’re a fan of the older Elliot Smith records, you’ll be into the R.H.P.-C.C.

The RaptureOut Of The Races And Onto The TracksSub PopThe Rapture is described in their press release as “sonicdeathfuckgroove.” If you have the new Modest Mouse album, put it on song five-that’s pretty much what this band sounds like, but a little bit artier. The Rapture’s definitely ass-whooping indie rock that deserves to be in your collection, if you’re not a prude, that is. This CD gives you some art-trash indie rock you can dance to, if you can believe that. Go ahead, get it and rock out, unless you’re too scared.-C.C.

BenjaminsThe Art Of DisappointmentDrive-thru RecordsThere she was-I was six years old, and she looked so pretty. I kissed her under a bridge in San Diego, California. She said I had to wipe my lips before I kissed her, so I did. A week later she dumped me for a kid who could do a double backflip off of the high dive at the Clairmont public pool.My life spiraled down from there-I lit the little teddy bear she gave me on fire and threw it in the alley to die. The kid she dumped me for was named Benjamin, so naturally I hate this band. Well, despite this slight bias, the music’s actually kind of catchy-catchy like Weezer, Blur, or something. You know what’s really sad? I saw the same girl a couple of years ago, and she said she married Benjamin, but he had just recently died trying to do a double backflip into a pool with no water. I thought, “A pool with no water? Well, that’s strange.”-J.M.